New NCI Report on How Americans Obtain Information About Cancer

Cancer Communication: Health Information National Trends Survey 2003 and 2005, an 85 page report based on data from the Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS) conducted every other year and sponsored by the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health, is available at the NIH website. The NCI first conducted the study in 2003, surveying the U.S. civilian adult population to assess trends in the usage of health information over time and to study the links among cancer-related communication, knowledge, attitudes, and behavior. From the press release: "The newly issued report provides a snapshot of how Americans are responding to changes in access to information and the abundance of health information. The data show a growing preference toward receiving health information -- whether cancer-related or other health information -- from a health care provider than from other sources, such as printed materials, friends and family, information specialists, and the Internet." About 12,000 responses (by random telephone calls) were recorded in both years combined.